Pilates revitalizes core exercise systems for aging adults

Sylvia Byrd-Leitner (left), co-founder and creative director at Pilates Core Center in Cherry Hill, says the exercise regimen is about using the right amount of effort.
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Gavin Segal earns his living as a personal trainer, teaching others the best way to keep their bodies in shape. A few weeks ago, he signed up for Pilates classes for the first time.

Why would a trainer turn to Pilates?

Health.

"The older you get, you focus more on health," the 44-year-old said, after a group class at Pilates Core Center in Cherry Hill.

"Before, the focus was on how you look rather than feeling great."

The Marlton resident is far from alone in embracing Pilates as part of an exercise regimen, if not the only part. And for good reason, said Angela Suter, who runs Pilates Soul Studio in Collingswood.

"Pilates is a lifestyle change," she said in an email. "It's not about coming in, taking a class and then leaving."

As Suter explains it, Pilates is low-impact strength training performed on various equipment or on a mat, all under the motivating guidance of an instructor.

"The difference between going to a gym facility and a specialized studio is going to be your class sizes. Studio classes tend to be smaller in size, which allows for a more hands-on, personalized approach," she added.

Named after Joseph Pilates, who developed the system early in the 20th century, Pilates attracted dancers who saw the method as a way to rehab their injuries. They studied with Pilates in his Manhattan studio back in the 1950s.

"It took off in physical therapy circles," said Ray Infante, a certification specialist for the Pilates Method Alliance, a professional association and certifying agency for Pilates teachers.

In the years following Joseph Pilates' death in 1967, many of his disciples opened studios, including in Beverly Hills, where it attracted the Hollywood elite in the 1970s. The media caught on and exposure accelerated.

"Pilates sort of exploded in the 1990s and spread all over world to places like Korea, Japan, Russia, Spain and Brazil," Infante noted.

Suzanne Kourlesis converted to Pilates six years ago and now takes classes at least three times a week.

"I started because the stars did it," she acknowledged, citing actress Jennifer Aniston and talk show host Oprah Winfrey.

Pilates is about functional muscle movement, said the 59-year-old from Westampton.

"As a student, you learn about your own body. You can amp it up or notch it down. And I am so relaxed afterwards."

What Pilates is not is a fad, insisted Sylvia Byrd-Leitner, co-owner of Pilates Core Center.

"Users become stronger, validating the system. Pilates then becomes a basic option."

Pilates is about using the right amount of effort, Byrd-Leitner added. No pain, no gain is not a slogan in Pilates circles.

Unlike most exercise systems, Pilates also works for most people, Infante said.

"The elderly can take it. The overweight can benefit. The fully healthy can take it. It's applicable to many populations.

"Not everyone can do Zumba."

You don't have to be a hard-core athlete or super flexible either, Suter noted.

"It's great for someone who is rehabilitating an injury, runners, golfers, dancers, pre- and postnatal mothers and just general fitness beginners."

You also can adjust the exercise plan to deal with specific injuries.

The German-born founder of Pilates grew up a sickly child suffering from respiratory and other illnesses. To strengthen himself, he created a system of exercises, Byrd-Leitner said.

He succeeded enough to become a boxer and in that capacity, was in England when World War I broke out. The British interned him. During his imprisonment, he worked with detainees, especially those hospitalized. By taking springs from beds and rigging them up to equipment, he created resistance.

The regimen he developed formed the basis for Pilates. Using the same approach, Pilates developed apparatus like the Reformer, a multi-function piece of equipment in studios. He also came up with The Cadillac, The Ladder Barrel and The Chair.

"He was ahead of his time," said Byrd-Leitner.

Today, there are purists who closely maintain the exact methods of Joseph Pilates. Others introduced biomechanical systems to bring Pilates up to date, the 20-year teacher added.

For example, the popular Core Align is a Pilates-based device.

Leah Baron came to Pilates eight years ago, after taking a class at a spa. "I had a list of bad habits and old injuries. It made me feel better," said the 59-year-old Medford Township resident.

The program taught her the proper way to use her body: posture, flexibility, balance and concentration — even how to breathe.

It took a while to grasp the exercises, Baron admitted. Now it's easy to do, she noted. And fun.

"You get that a-ha moment when you get it. But I'm not spent after a workout. I really feel good. "

Says Suter: "Ultimately when it comes to health and fitness, it's about finding what makes you and your body feel the best."

Pilates keeps you young, Byrd-Leitner observed. "I want to still be fluid at 100."

The impact extends beyond the program.

"I couldn't do half the stuff I do without Pilates," said Janet Scott, 35, of Jobstown.

Added Kourlesis: "At 5 p.m. my body tells me to come to Pilates. I just wish I took it when I was younger."